Meet the Press - January 2, 2011

Guests:
Sen. Lindsey Graham (R-SC)
Sen. Pat Toomey (R-PA)
Prof. Stephen Carter (Yale)
E.J. Dionne (Wash. Post)
Katty Kay (BBC)
David Brooks (NYT)
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Gregory: Happy New Year Linds

Graham: you too Greggers

Gregory: will you work with the President to
grow the economy?

Graham: yes - if he does what we want

Gregory: interesting

Graham: Obama caused a recession in 2008

Gregory: fascinating

Graham: we need certainty

Gregory: what does that mean?

Graham: “certainty” means “Republican policies”

Gregory: Did Fannie Mae cause the entire recession?

Graham: yes poor black people getting mortgages brought us the worst economy in 7 decades

Gregory: truly amazing

Graham: we must make home ownership harder

Gregory: Is telling people to have health care insurance unconstitutional?

Graham: states should opt out of their citizens having health care

Gregory: Obama and Harry Reid ate your lunch in the lame duck session

Graham: it’s terrible that we weren’t allowed to amend the bill to repeal Don’t Ask Don’t Tell to
keep Don’t Ask Don’t Tell

Gregory: what will the GOP do in 2011?

Graham: cut spending which will hopefully
prevent a recovery and hurt Obama

Gregory: what will the tea party do?

Graham: if we’re lucky cut social security and misspell major legislation

Gregory: will you raise the debt ceiling?

Graham: if we don’t do it will wreck America forever

Gregory: so will you vote for it?

Graham: no

Gregory: what do you want?

Graham: privatize social security

Gregory: that’s crazy

Graham: President Rand Paul says we must cut Medicare and print more gold coins

Gregory: I see

Graham: we will be Greece if we don’t means-test entitlements

Gregory: amazingly you think Obama can’t hammer out a deal

Graham: right

Gregory: but you have to admit he got a lot done
at the end of 2010

Graham: but those were liberal policies so that doesn’t count

Gregory: will you shut down the government down?

Graham: the American people want us to do two things: cut the deficit and also cut the debt

Gregory: anything else?

Graham: also cut spending

Gregory: Biden says we’re getting out of Afghanistan come hell or high water

Graham: he’s a cool dude

Gregory: what do you want?

Graham: I want a long term enduring relationship

Gregory: Ok but what about Afghan war?

Graham: we should leave in a responsible way

Gregory: how so?

Graham: by keeping several U.S. air bases there forever

Gregory: Do you think the Afghan people want us in their country permanently?

Graham: well Fluffy they are going to have earn the right to have American soldiers occupy their nation until the end of time

Graham: who do you want to run for President?

Graham: hopefully someone who is not crazy

Gregory: so not Sarah Palin?

Graham: in a nutshell

[ break ]

Gregory: Obama had a good end to 2010 but the economy is still not strong enough

Brooks: We need to cut spending because
blah blah blah

Toomey: We should have free trade, lower
corporate taxes, and fewer environmental regulations on businesses

Dionne: If the GOP hates waste what about corporate welfare

Kay: America doesn’t want to face any real problems

Gregory: so sad

Kay: Tea Party politicians can either destroy America or disappoint their whacko supporters

Gregory: even Lindsay Graham is talking crazy on the debt ceiling - are you all fucking nuts?

Toomey: The debt is a big problem so I won’t vote for the debt ceiling until we cut corporate taxes

Dionne: the only people sacrificing are troops and poor people

Brooks: President Paul Ryan is finally willing to let poor people really suffer

Toomey: the people of Pennsylvania are willing to sacrifice their fictional earmarks

Gregory: but you guys are cutting taxes for the rich

Carter: let’s cut taxes for the rich but in exchange
tax more poor people

Kay: the America people want compromise and sacrifice - but they want other people to do all the compromising and sacrificing

Gregory: Let’s talk about what a failure Obama is

Dionne: he should propose popular things -
people seem to like that

Gregory: Who is going to be the GOP Presidential nominee?

Brooks: there are two camps - the Crazies and the Boring White Guys

Gregory: who will win?

Brooks: I still think the GOP is a Boring White Guy party

Toomey: If we don’t nominate a Crazy Person there will be a third party challenge

Gregory: could Palin carry Pennsylvania?

Toomey: well I’m an idiot and I won there

Gregory: good point

Gregory: Obama’s ambassador could win the
GOP nomination!

Brooks: Fluffy you are a moron’s moron

Kay: the next President will come from Facebook

Gregory: Haley Barbour was a racist but that was last week - now he’s a nice guy

Carter: there’s a Formless Anger out there

Gregory: a political Smoke Monster?

Carter: the winner in 2012 has to Ride the Anger

Gregory: Searing Populism!

Audience: new band names!

Brooks: people don’t Big Government or Small Government they want Effective Government

Toomey: no people want No Government

Kay: oh zip it Toomster

Gregory: What about Afghanistan?

Carter: why the hell are we even there?

Dionne: Democracies don’t like to get bogged down for ten years in a war in Afghanistan

Soviet Audience: is no picnic

Gregory: people like to have roads without mountains of snow

Kay: if you’re going to be a jerk like Chris Christie you had better be competent

Gregory: good point

Kay: Cory Booker was out there shoveling showing the old guys how it’s done

Brooks: why should New York City waste money on snow plows - just suck it up

Dionne: that’s really really stupid

Gregory: and that’s Meet The Press

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